[Heeplist] Salisbury 50 years

[Tapio Minkkinen]

I added this to my Facebook page yesterday and I tried to send this to 
the list also but it didn't go through for some reason.


URIAH HEEP: SALISBURY
Released on 12th February 1971
Original UK release: Vertigo 6360028

Side A
1. BIRD OF PREY (Box/Byron/Hensley/Newton)
2. THE PARK (Hensley)
3. TIME TO LIVE (Box/Byron/Hensley)
4. LADY IN BLACK (Hensley)
Side B
1. HIGH PRIESTESS (Hensley)
2. SALISBURY (Box/Byron/Hensley)

Uriah Heep's second studio album Salisbury was released in the UK 50 
years ago on 12th February 1971 (release dates in other countries may be 
different)

On this album Ken Hensley took his position as main songwriter and 
musical leader. Of the eight songs released so far from the album 
sessions he wrote five and the rest three were co-written with other 
band members. He also sang lead vocals on two songs: Lady In Black & 
High Priestess.

Of the songs the best known is without a doubt Lady In Black which 
surprisingly became a hit for the band in 1977 - six years after 
original release and is today one of their most popular and best known 
songs. The title track is a very special as it's over 16 minutes long 
orchestrated piece with brass and woodmind instruments. Bird Of Prey is 
another well know song because together with Lady In Black those are the 
only ones that have been included in the live set regularily.

I have always seen this as merely a bunch of songs put together and not 
a real album. I don't mean it as a negative thing but it's just an 
observation because all the songs are very different from each other and 
could well all be by different bands. I guess this was a time of 
experimentation for the band that was still searching for their 
direction.

In North America the album was released with a different cover because 
the theme with tank on cover wasn't the best possible subject at the 
time in America that was going through war in Vietnam. Also track 
listing was slightly different - Simon The Bullet Freak replaced Bird Of 
Prey because earlier version of the song had been included already on 
North American versions of the 1st album.

There were two singles releases: Lady In Black was released in Germany 
and other European countries, High Priestess in Germany & USA. In UK 
there were no singles released.
The album wasn't really a big success. It charted in Germany like the 
debut album but in The UK it didn't chart & in The US it didn't make it 
to Top 100.

Latest remastered vinyl release was in October 2015 (BMG/Sanctuary 
BMGRM085LP) and the latest remastered CD re-release was the expanded 
deluxe edition 15-track double CD in October 2016 (BMG/Sanctuary 
BMGCAT2CD56). There's also a new 2020 "Expanded Version" released only 
digitally in streaming platforms and as downloads that includes all 15 
tracks that were on the double CD release plus 7 additional different, 
alternate or edited versions taken from previous releases.

More information at album page in the official Uriah Heep Discography: 
http://heepfiles.net/search2/sali.htm


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TapioM.
Email tapio at heepfiles.net
The HeepFiles website www.heepfiles.net